VALUING PRIVATE COMPANIES:
FACTORS AND APPROACHES TO CONSIDER
Presenter
Venue
Date
PUBLIC VS. PRIVATE VALUATION:
COMPANY-SPECIFIC DIFFERENCES
Private Firms
Public Firms
Less mature
Later in life cycle
Smaller size   risk  
risk premiums
Larger and have access to
public financing
Managers often have
substantial ownership
position
Greater external shareholder
ownership
Potentially  quality & depth
of management
Greater quality & depth of
management
PUBLIC VS. PRIVATE VALUATION:
COMPANY-SPECIFIC DIFFERENCES
Private Firms
Public Firms
Lower quality of
 pressure to make timely,
information disclosure   detailed disclosures
risk &  valuations
Shareholders have a
longer-term perspective
More emphasis on shortterm performance
Greater emphasis on tax
management
Less emphasis on tax
management
PUBLIC VS. PRIVATE VALUATION:
STOCK-SPECIFIC DIFFERENCES
Private Firms
Public Firms
Shares are less liquid 
liquidity discount
Greater number of
shareholders
Concentration of control
Share ownership and
control are more diffuse
Potential restrictions on sale Public market for shares
of shares
REASONS FOR PRIVATE EQUITY VALUATIONS
Transaction
Related
Compliance
Related
Litigation
Related
Financial
reporting
Damages
Private financing
IPOs
Acquisitions
Bankruptcy
Compensation
Lost profits
Tax reporting
Shareholder
disputes
DEFINITIONS OF “VALUE”
Fair Market
Value
Market Value
Fair Value
Investment
Value
Intrinsic Value
• Tax reporting
• Real estate and tangible asset
appraisal
• Financial reporting and litigation
• Private company sale
• Investment analysis
PRIVATE VALUATION APPROACHES
Income
Approach
• Based on the present value of
expected future cash flows or income
Market
Approach
• Based on pricing multiples from sales
of similar companies
Asset-Based
Approach
• Based on the value of the company’s
net assets (assets minus liabilities)
EARNINGS NORMALIZATION
Reported
Earnings
Adjustments
(For
nonrecurring,
noneconomic,
unusual items)
Normalized
Earnings
(Earnings
capacity of the
business if it is
run efficiently)
EXAMPLE: EARNINGS NORMALIZATION
Example
Adjustment to Income Statement
Private firm CEO is paid $1,200,000.
Analyst estimates market rate for CEO is
$800,000.
Reduce SG&A expenses by $400,000.
Firm leases a warehouse for
$200,000/year from a family member.
Analyst estimates market rate is
$300,000.
Increase SG&A expenses by $100,000.
Firm owns a vacant building that has
reported expenses of $90,000 and
depreciation expenses of $15,000. The
building is noncore.
Reduce SG&A expenses by $90,000.
Reduce depreciation expenses by
$15,000.
Firm may be acquired by a strategic
Buyer A that expects synergies with cost
savings of $230,000. Buyer B is a
financial buyer.
Reduce SG&A expenses by $230,000
when calculating normalized earnings for
Buyer A, but not for Buyer B.
CASH FLOW ESTIMATION
Free Cash Flow to the Firm (FCFF)
•
•
•
•
•
Start with normalized earnings
Remove interest expense
Include an estimate of income taxes on operating income
Add back depreciation
Subtract a provision for capital expenditures and working
capital
Free Cash Flow to Equity (FCFE)
• Start with FCFF
• Subtract after tax interest expense
• Add net new borrowing
INCOME APPROACH: THREE METHODS
• Free Cash Flow
- Based on the present value of future estimated cash flows and terminal value
using a risk-adjusted discount rate
- PV of expected future cash flows + PV of terminal value
• Capitalized Cash Flow
- Based on a single estimate of economic benefits divided by an appropriate
capitalization rate
• Residual Income (Excess earnings)
- Based on an estimate of the value of intangible assets, working capital, and
fixed assets
CAPITALIZED CASH FLOW METHOD
Vf = FCFF1/(WACC – gf)
•
•
•
•
Vf = Value of the firm
FCFF1 = Free cash flow for next 12 months
WACC = Weighted average cost of capital
gf = Sustainable growth rate of FCFF
Ve = FCFE1/(r – gf)
• r = Required return on equity
• g = Sustainable growth rate of FCFE
EXCESS EARNINGS METHOD
• Residual income =
- Normalized earnings – (Return on working capital) – (Return on fixed
assets)
• Value of intangible assets =
RI  (1  g )
rg
• Value of the firm =
- Working capital + Fixed assets + Intangible assets
EXAMPLE: EXCESS EARNINGS METHOD
Working capital
Fixed assets
Normalized earnings
Required return for working capital
$400,000
$1,600,000
$225,000
5%
Required return for fixed assets
12 %
Growth rate of residual income
3%
Discount rate for intangible assets
18 %
EXAMPLE: EXCESS EARNINGS METHOD
1. Return on working capital = 5% x $400,000 = $20,000
2. Return on fixed assets = 12% x $1,600,000 = $192,000
3. Residual income = $225,000 – $20,000 – $192,000 = $13,000
4. Value of intangible assets = ($13,000 x 1.03) / (0.18 – 0.03) =
$89,267
5. Value of firm = $400,000 + $1,600,000 + $89,267 = $2,089,267
DISCOUNT RATE ESTIMATION ISSUES
Size Premiums
• Size effect can increase discount rate
Cost Debt
• Relative availability may be limited  increased cost of debt
• Higher operating risk  increased cost of debt
Discount Rates in an Acquisition Context
• Should be consistent with cash flows, not buyer’s cost of capital
Projection Risk
• Uncertainty associated with future cash flows
Life Cycle stage
• Classification, early stage difficulties, company-specific risk
REQUIRED RATE OF RETURN MODELS
CAPM
Expanded
CAPM
Build-Up
Approach
Rf
Rf
Rf
Βi(equity risk premium)
Βi(equity risk premium)
Equity risk premium
Small stock premium
Small stock premium
Company-specific risk
Company-specific risk
Industry risk premium
EXAMPLE: REQUIRED RETURN MODELS
Risk-free rate
1.00 %
Equity risk premium
6.00 %
Beta
1.50 %
Small stock premium
4.00 %
Company-specific risk premium
1.50 %
Industry risk premium
1.20 %
EXAMPLE: REQUIRED RETURN MODELS
CAPM
Expanded
CAPM
Build-Up
Approach
1.00%
1.00%
1.00%
1.50(6%)
1.50(6%)
6.00%
4.00%
4.00%
1.50%
1.50%
1.20%
= 10.00%
= 15.50%
=13.70%
MARKET APPROACH: THREE METHODS
Guideline Public Company
• Based on the observed multiples of comparable
companies
Guideline Transactions
• Based on pricing multiples from the sale of entire
companies
Prior Transaction Method
• Based on actual transactions in the stock of the private
company
GUIDELINE PUBLIC COMPANY METHOD
Identify group
of comparable
public
companies
Derive pricing
multiples for
the guideline
companies
Adjust pricing
multiples for
relative risk
and growth
prospects
GUIDELINE TRANSACTIONS METHOD
Most relevant for valuing the controlling interest in a
private company
Transaction data based on public filings by parties to the
transaction or from certain transaction databases
Factors to consider in
assessing pricing multiples:
•
•
•
•
•
Synergies
Contingent consideration
Noncash consideration
Availability of transactions
Changes between transaction and
valuation dates
PRIOR TRANSACTION METHOD
Underlying Principle
• Based on actual transactions in the stock of the subject company
• Based on either the actual price paid or the multiples implied
from the transaction
• Most relevant when valuing the minority equity interest of a
company
Advantages
• Provides the most meaningful evidence of value since it based
on actual transactions in the company’s stock
Disadvantages
• It can be a less reliable method if transactions are infrequent
EXAMPLE: GUIDELINE PUBLIC COMPANY
METHOD
Market value of debt
$6,800,000.00
Normalized EBITDA
$28,000,000.00
Average MVIC/EBITDA multiple
9.00
Control premium from past
transactions
20.00 %
Discount for increased risk
18.00 %
EXAMPLE: GUIDELINE PUBLIC COMPANY
METHOD
Public price multiple will be deflated by 18 percent
• Due to increased risk of private firm
If buyer is strategic
• A control premium of 20 percent from previous
transactions is applied
If buyer is nonstrategic
• No control premium is applied
EXAMPLE: GUIDELINE PUBLIC COMPANY METHOD
STRATEGIC BUYER
Risk adjustment: 9.0 × (1 – 0.18) = 7.4
Control premium: 7.4 × (1 + 0.20) = 8.9
Value of firm: 8.9 × $28,000,000 = $249,200,000
Value of equity: $249,200,000 – $6,800,000 = $242,400,000
EXAMPLE: GUIDELINE PUBLIC COMPANY METHOD
FINANCIAL BUYER
Risk adjustment: 9.0 × (1 – 0.18) = 7.4
The control premium is not applied
Value of firm: 7.4 × $28,000,000 = $207,200,000
Value of equity: $207,200,000 – $6,800,000 = $200,400,000
ASSET-BASED APPROACH
Underlying Principle
• The value of ownership is equivalent to the fair value of its assets less the fair
value of its liabilities
Rarely Used for Going Concerns
• Difficulty in valuing
• intangible assets
• special purpose tangible assets
• individual assets
Most Appropriate for
• Resource firms
• Financial services firms
• Investment companies (real estate investment trusts, closed-end investment
companies)
• Small businesses with limited intangible assets or early stage companies
VALUATION DISCOUNTS/PREMIUMS
Discounts
• Amount or percentage deduction from the value of an equity
interest
Lack of Control Discount (DLOC)
• Reflects the absence of some or all control
• DLOC = 1 – [1/(1 + Control premium)]
Lack of Marketability Discount (DLOM)
• Reflects the absence of marketability
• Applied when valuing a noncontrolling interest
DLOC EXAMPLE
Given a control premium of 19 percent
1


DLOC  1  
 16.0%

1  0.19 
VALUATION DISCOUNTS
Estimated Value
of Equity Interest
Estimated Value
of Equity Interest
Pro rata value of
equity interest
Pro rata value of
equity interest
Lack of control
discount
x (1 – Control
discount)
Lack of marketability
discount
x (1 – Marketability
discount)
VALUATION DISCOUNTS
Given a DLOC of 20 percent & DLOM of 16 percent
Total discount  1  [(1  DLOC)(1  DLOM)]
Total discount  1  [(1  0.20)(1  0.16)]  32.8%
VALUATION STANDARDS
Objective
• To protect third party users by promoting and maintaining a
high level of trust in the appraisal and valuation practice
Function
• To provide generally accepted and recognized standards for
appraisals and valuations
• To establish requirements for impartiality, independence,
objectivity, and competent performance
International Valuation Standards (IVS)
• Focus on business valuation, real estate, and tangible assets
• Adopted by 53 countries
SUMMARY
Differences between Private and Public Companies
• Company specific
• Stock specific
Reasons for Private Company Valuations
• Transactions
• Compliance (financial or tax reporting)
• Litigation
Definitions of Value
•
•
•
•
•
Fair market value
Market value
Fair value for financial reporting or in a litigation context
Investment value
Intrinsic value
SUMMARY
Valuation Method
• Income approach: Free cash flow, capitalized cash flow, and
residual income methods
• Market approach: Guideline public company, guideline transactions,
and prior transaction methods
• Asset-based approach
Discounts
• Lack of control
• Lack of marketability
Valuation Standards
• Cover the development and reporting of valuations
• Protect users and the public